Contact Capital Fire
Columbus
3360 Valleyview Drive
Columbus OH 43204
800 932 1824
614 279 9448
614 279 6092 fx
North Canton
6555 Promler N.W.
North Canton OH 44720
877 227 6930
330-966-1800
330-966-1900 fx
Company History
Most people do not give a lot of thought to fire safety; they expect the safeguards to be in place. So do the 80 or so owners of Capital Fire Protection Co.
Since 1963 employee-owned Capital Fire Protection has been designing and installing automatic sprinkler systems that fire departments and insurance companies recognize as the most effective means of combating fire.
Founded in the basement of the late Harold E. Recob, the company has become the largest independent in-house fire protection contractor in the state, with annual sales of more than $6 million–30 times the value of sales during its first year of business.
The work of Capital Fire Protection is not readily apparent–that's the whole idea–but its lifesaving systems are found in more than 1,100 of the city's largest private and public institutions, such as Columbus City Center; and the headquarters offices and operations of Borden Incorporated, Banc One Corporation, EBCO Manufacturing Company, the Nationwide Insurance Companies; and the McDonnell-Douglas plant adjacent to Port Columbus. In 1981 the company installed an automatic sprinkler system for Motorist Mutual Insurance Company in its 21-story office building. The installation was the first high-rise, retro-fit sprinkler system in Columbus and Franklin County.
Although sprinkler systems represent the lions share of the business, Capital Fire Protection has been on the leading edge each time new fire suppression systems were developed, such as carbon dioxide for paint spray area, Halon 1301/Clean Agent for computer rooms, foam systems for airports, and a variety of dry chemicals for different installaion. The company also sells and services fire extinguishers, fire alarms, and smoke detectors.
Due to the extreme likelihood of explosions in the event of a fire in the facility and the possible loss of life, and ultra-high speed, automatic deluge system was designed. Tests determined that to suppress an explosion in the highly hazardous areas of the facility, water in adequate quantities had to be applied to the problem area within 50 milliseconds–.05 seconds.
In response to these stringent demands, Capital Fire Protection developed a system to utilize a high-speed deluge valve that decides with milliseconds whether to open and flood the room with water. The system is linked to ultraviolet detectors that immediately discern the very first light from an explosion or fire but are insensitive to sunlight and normal artificial lighting.
Since 1966 the company has expanded five times at its 24,000-squarefoot Valleyview Drive headquarters, most recently with an addition of 8,000 square feet. It also has a full-service office in Canton, Ohio.